Cozy up with a warm dish of pasta. This delicious pasta recipe from Beci Falkenberg, a chef at Cancer Wellness at Piedmont.  Quick, inexpensive and filling, puttanesca pasta is an Italian favorite. You’ll enjoy this recipe for its simplicity, savory taste and health-promoting benefits, including lycopene from the tomatoes, which helps prevent cancer and heart disease, heart-smart garlic and vitamin-rich herbs.

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. thin whole wheat, quinoa or brown rice spaghetti noodles

• 2 to 3 cloves garlic (see cooking note)

• ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives

• ½ cup pitted green olives

• 1 ripe tomato or 1 cup cherry tomatoes

• ¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

• ¼ cup chopped parsley

• ¼ cup fresh basil leaves

• 2 tablespoons of capers

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

• Salt and pepper, to taste

• Grated parmesan cheese, optional topping

Directions:

Cook noodles in large pot of boiling water until just tender, about 10 minutes.

While the pasta is cooking, place garlic in a blender or food processor and process until finely minced.

(Cooking note: To soften the raw garlic taste, drop the cloves in the pot of boiling pasta for a few minutes before processing.)

Add olives, tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, parsley, basil, capers and oil to garlic; pulse and process until mixture is blended and chunky. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Drain the cooked spaghetti, saving about 1 cup of the boiling water. Return the pasta to the pot, add the puttaneseca pesto, toss to combine. Add a little of the reserved cooking water to thin the sauce if needed.  Serve hot with grated parmesan cheese, if desired.

Note: This versatile pesto sauce can be enjoyed spooned onto a baked potato, as a dip with vegetables or topped on a piece of toasted bread.

For more healthy recipe ideas, click here. 

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